It was as if everyone in the San Gabriel Valley had received the same memo: Spring has sprung, so hit the road and enjoy the great outdoors. And we did on Saturday (March 23, 2013) After packing a picnic lunch, my wife Colleen, my three sons Brett, Roger and Ryan, Ryan’s fiancé, Shannon, and I […]

Usually, I don’t like the word “clammy” as a description, unless you’re referring to Pismo Beach, a great California coastal getaway that once billed itself as the “Clam Capital of the World. While the clams — once so abundant that plows harvested them on the beach — are largely gone, the Splash Café still makes […]

I have a confession to make. My favorite place to grab breakfast is a short freeway hop on the 210 to Mary’s Market and Canyon Café in Sierra Madre. I used to go there regularly more than a decade ago when I was the managing editor of Sierra Madre-based American Bungalow magazine, but sadly, Mary […]

While the recession lingers, you may not be flush with dollars, but that’s no excuse to deprive yourself culturally, historically, artistically, scientifically, or musically. Los Angeles’ myriad museums offer free monthly or weekly visits. And some are free to visitors year-round. LaVerneOnline provides a list below, but please check websites just […]

I’ve always love cities with rivers, and our state capital has two of the best in the American (east-west) and Sacramento (north-south). While I’ve floated down or walked or driven over the American many times, I had not paid the same affections to the Sacramento River until this week. Upon leaving our state capital, I […]

Sunday Drive: Destination Healdsburg, California. Although I hardly hew to a set agenda when I travel, I did have a destination in my mind, Healdsburg, Calif., Russian River country on the Redwood Highway (101), about 65 miles of San Francisco. Instead of taking the scenic or logical route out of Los Angeles, I humped it […]

Julienne’s is the quintessential Los Angeles restaurant button-holed in the quaint and quiet community of San Marino. Our server Herbert was a jovial host who told us he had been with the French-inspired restaurant for 25 years. He said he started a year after Susan Compoy*founded the eatery. Despite the busy lunch crowd salivating for […]

The holidays are a great time to sneak off to Hawaii, Seattle, Florida or some other low-fare destination. Here publisher Peter Bennett re-posts a piece on the Emerald City, one of his favorite culinary capitals.

Nothing wakes me up faster than the simple, declarative sentence, “We’re going to Mammoth Lakes.” I don’t think about the scary patches of single-lane 395 Highway out of Adelanto to Ridgecrest that I absolutely hate while riding on the shoulder to avoid the huge semi’s and trailers coming directly at me separated by only a […]